A former top aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul has been charged with being a Chinese operative.

Federal prosecutors said Linda Sun used her position in state government to benefit the Chinese Communist Party, including blocking representatives from the Taiwanese government from meeting with high-ranking state officials.

She is also accused of arranging meetings between New York state officials and Chinese government officials, as well as providing unauthorized letters from the governor’s office to Chinese officials, allowing them to enter the United States unlawfully.

Team 12 Investigates is digging deeper into Sun’s background. She held several influential positions in state government for more than a decade. Between 2015 and 2018, she served as the director of external affairs of Global NY for Empire State Development, the economic development arm of New York.

Sun was the deputy chief diversity officer for the Cuomo administration from 2018 to 2020. She rose through the ranks to later become the superintendent for Intergovernmental Affairs at the NYS Department of Financial Services from 2020 to 2021.

She was then appointed deputy chief of staff for Gov. Hochul. She left that job in September 2022 to become the deputy commissioner for Strategic Business Development for the Department of Labor.

“We terminated her employment in March 2023 after discovering evidence of misconduct, immediately reported her actions to law enforcement and have assisted law enforcement throughout this process,” said Avil Small, a spokesperson for Gov. Hochul.

FBI agents said, despite her termination, Sun continued to attend Asian community events claiming to be the deputy commissioner of the state Department of Labor.

Former Rep. Peter King, who previously chaired the House Homeland Security Committee, said Sun’s access could be a significant security risk.

“Having somebody in that position, having access to business records, to personnel records, to knowing what’s going on in the community, she gets entré into different minority communities, into different ethnic communities,” said King. “That’s all part of outreach, which is a really good thing unless the person doing the outreach is an agent of a foreign enemy.”

FBI agents said Sun received millions of dollars in kickbacks from the Chinese government. She allegedly used that money to buy luxury vehicles and homes, including her $3.5 million Manhasset property in 2021. As News 12 reported, that home was the focus of an early-morning FBI raid in July.

“If [the Chinese government] thought she was important enough to get $4 million, then she must be doing damage or capable of doing damage to the people of New York and the people of the United States,” King said.

Sun’s husband, Chris Hu, has been charged with money laundering conspiracy. Both individuals pleaded not guilty and were released on bond. Their travel has been limited to New York City, Long Island, Maine and New Hampshire.